Chapter Thirty-Three: Awakening from the Dream (Part Two)

"Yao’er, Yao’er!" The broken, plaintive calls echoed from within the room. Ai Shuo entered, carrying a bowl of freshly brewed medicinal soup.

She saw Ji Xuanyu’s face twisted in pain, his hands grasping at the air as if trying to seize something just out of reach, his lips ceaselessly murmuring Yinyao’s name.

But Yinyao’s life had already faded away. The moment the barrier of life shattered, when Cold Spirit Valley reverted to an ordinary mountainside, it meant Yinyao was gone.

Ai Shuo gazed at Ji Xuanyu’s tormented state, her brows furrowing deeply. Though she too found it hard to accept, the truth remained—Yinyao had truly left them.

"Yao’er, where are you?"

"Yao’er, please don’t leave me. Please?"

"Yao’er."

"Yao’er..."

Ji Xuanyu’s desperate calls made Ai Shuo’s heart ache with pity. She had never seen Xuanyu like this before, and the sight filled her with a vague sense of fear. She feared what would happen when Ji Xuanyu awoke to the news of Yinyao’s death—feared he would not be able to accept it, and feared she would lack the courage to tell him.

Standing before Ji Xuanyu, bowl in hand, Ai Shuo forgot herself for a moment.

"Yao’er, is that you?" In his dreams, Ji Xuanyu seemed to have grasped Yinyao’s hand and called out anxiously.

Suddenly, Ai Shuo’s hand was seized in his grip. Startled by Ji Xuanyu’s cry, she almost dropped the bowl. Instinctively, she wrenched her hand free and managed to catch the bowl just as it was about to fall.

"Yao’er!" came Ji Xuanyu’s wounded, fearful voice, so full of anguish it pained the heart.

Ai Shuo felt a sharp pang within her. She was suddenly terrified by the depth of Ji Xuanyu’s love for Yinyao. She could not imagine his pain upon learning that Yinyao was gone because of them.

Hesitation clouded Ai Shuo’s expression as she looked at Ji Xuanyu, trembling. A small wooden vial slipped from her sleeve—plain, yet more singular than any porcelain vessel.

With shaking hands, she pulled out the stopper and carefully poured the white powder into the bowl, her trembling spilling much of it. She returned the vial to her sleeve, stirred the soup, glanced one last time at Ji Xuanyu, and then, steeling herself, fed him the medicine tainted with something more.

Her hands were slick with spilled medicine—Ji Xuanyu had struggled, refusing to drink, but in the end, most of it went down. Carrying the bowl, Ai Shuo left the room, quietly closing the door behind her. She softly whispered to Ji Xuanyu inside:

"Xuanyu, I know you may one day hate me for this, but all I wish is for you not to suffer so much. Let everything about Yinyao become like a dream—let it all fade when you awake."

For the next three days, Ji Xuanyu did not wake. Night and day, he called out in dreams, "Yao’er, don’t leave me, I beg you! Yao’er, where are you?"

His face was marked by sorrow, brows tightly knit, as if locked in a nightmare, cold sweat beading constantly on his brow.

Gu Xinyu returned, bringing news from Yin Su. He told Mu Ye and Ai Shuo that Yinyao had fallen from the cliff and died, but that Yin Su had not perished with her.

The news shocked Mu Ye and Ai Shuo—they could hardly believe it. For someone of Yinyao’s power, dragging an equal to death should not have been difficult, and yet...

Seeing their reaction, Gu Xinyu explained in detail. Yinyao and Yin Su had fallen together; Yinyao had entangled Yin Su with her ice spirit, but for some unknown reason, she released her hold, letting Yin Su go and falling alone into the abyss. Yin Su, by that miracle, survived.

Mu Ye was skeptical, and Ai Shuo was deeply puzzled—why would Yinyao let Yin Su go, knowing she was unleashing a tiger back into the wild?

In the end, they had no choice but to accept the reality. The only thing that mattered now was waiting for Ji Xuanyu to awaken.

After changing Mu Ye’s bandages, Ai Shuo went to check on Ji Xuanyu. Four days had passed, and Mu Ye’s wounds had already scabbed over and healed, as had Ji Xuanyu’s.

Standing outside, Ai Shuo noticed Ji Xuanyu’s calls growing fainter, until by nightfall, they ceased and silence fell. Her heart settled—she had worried that too much of the medicine had spilled and its effect would be lost. For three days, all he had uttered was Yao’er’s name. Now, perhaps the medicine was finally working.

With a trace of guilt, Ai Shuo glanced at Ji Xuanyu—Xuanyu, now you’ll have no memory of Yinyao, nor so much sorrow.

She had kept this secret from Mu Ye and Gu Xinyu, not knowing how to broach it.

Mu Ye and Gu Xinyu only knew that Yinyao was gone, and that Xuanyu cried her name in his dreams. They didn’t know how they would face him upon waking, or how to tell him the truth—Yinyao is dead. Please, accept your loss.

On the morning of the fifth day, Ji Xuanyu awoke. Gu Xinyu, Mu Ye, and Ai Shuo, each nursing their own worries, but united in their anxiety, came to see him.

"What happened to me?" Ji Xuanyu remembered only being wounded by Yin Su. Everything else was a blank.

Mu Ye and Gu Xinyu exchanged glances. From what they knew of Xuanyu, shouldn’t his first words have been to anxiously ask after Yinyao? Why was he only asking what had happened to himself?

Mu Ye, puzzled, checked Ji Xuanyu’s pulse, then looked at Ai Shuo, who only met his gaze with quiet resolve.

"Xuanyu, you were attacked by people sent by Ji Muyu and gravely wounded. The three of us arrived in time to save you," Mu Ye said gently, making no mention of Yinyao.

"That’s right. Also, Xuanyu, there’s something I need to tell you," Gu Xinyu added, catching the exchange between Mu Ye and Ai Shuo, and suspecting the truth. Best to question Ai Shuo in detail later; it seemed she had done something.

"What is it?" Ji Xuanyu looked at Gu Xinyu, genuinely confused—there was no trace of Yinyao in his mind.

"Xuanyu, I hope you won’t hate me," Gu Xinyu began, and Ji Xuanyu was even more perplexed. Why was Xinyu suddenly afraid he might be hated?

"Xuanyu, I was once an agent for Ji Muyu, known as the Dark Tiger—equal in rank to Yin Su," Gu Xinyu confessed, revealing his past identity.

Mu Ye had already confirmed this and told Ai Shuo; neither of them held it against him, believing it was all in the past. But Ji Xuanyu, who had been unconscious, knew nothing of it.

"Dark Tiger? The top agent? Xinyu, you?" Ji Xuanyu could scarcely believe it, but recalling Xinyu’s hidden strength, found it plausible.

Gu Xinyu gritted his teeth. "Yes! Xuanyu, if you must hate me, then so be it!"

"Why did you tell us? Why would you betray everyone?" Ji Xuanyu still felt a brotherly bond with Gu Xinyu and hoped his suspicions would be proven wrong.

"Xuanyu, Xinyu has already left Ji Muyu for the sake of us all. In rescuing you, he even killed comrades who had once fought by his side," Mu Ye interjected, hoping to explain.

"That’s right," Ai Shuo quickly agreed.

"Xinyu, we’re brothers, aren’t we?" Ji Xuanyu suddenly asked.

"Of course!" Gu Xinyu replied with conviction.

"Then I trust you! Don’t worry, I could never hate you—I can’t thank you enough!" Xuanyu’s tone became lighter as he spoke.

With a hearty thump to his chest, Ji Xuanyu sent Gu Xinyu stumbling back, but then they both burst out laughing.

After helping Xuanyu lie down, the three left and walked to a distant grove.

"Ai Shuo, why has Xuanyu forgotten Yinyao?" Gu Xinyu asked the moment they arrived.

"I—I added ‘Dream’s End’ to his medicine," Ai Shuo answered, her eyes evasive.

"Dream’s End? What is that?" Gu Xinyu asked, unfamiliar with the name.

"Dream’s End is a medicine that makes one forget the person they love most. After taking it, a person awakens as if from a dream, forgetting all about that person and everything connected to them. Since Ji Xuanyu has forgotten Yinyao, it proves she was the one he loved most," Mu Ye explained for Ai Shuo, his voice tinged with sorrow.

"So Xuanyu’s forgotten about Yinyao—won’t you blame me for what I’ve done?" Ai Shuo braced herself for their reproach.

"Silly girl, of course not!" Mu Ye took Ai Shuo’s hand, pulling her into his arms.

"You did the right thing. Yinyao is dead, and Xuanyu could never have accepted it. Let him forget—perhaps his heart will be less burdened this way."

"Yes, it’s better this way. Let Xuanyu forget, so he won’t suffer the torment of longing," Gu Xinyu nodded.

If they could not be together,

then let it be forgotten.

--- End ---